


Sometimes you have lemons

by snowynight



Category: Marvel
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Mermaid, Alternate Universe - Space, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Crack, Established Relationship, Fantasy, Fluff, Humor, M/M, Mpreg, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-07-20
Updated: 2011-07-20
Packaged: 2017-10-21 14:09:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,103
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/226050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snowynight/pseuds/snowynight
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Life's weird for Steve as a super werewolf. But pregnancy?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sometimes you have lemons

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for muccamukk to look it up! About how Steve functioned in the water. Imagine that the Atlanteans has a magic pill for that.

Life was strange, that Steve knew after he volunteered to the super werewolf serum project to help his brothers and sisters in the war against vampires, getting frozen in the Arctic Ocean, only to be discovered by an remnant of Atlantis and brought to the space. A space mermaid, even. Falling in love with said space mermaid was completely unexpected, either. But this? This tops everything.

"...Congratulations! You're having children!" Don Blake said.

"Are you sure that isn't a tumour?" Steve asked.

"Why do you think that? I have done a lot of check up to ensure the result " Then Steve was reminded of the experiment he was agreed to. "Tony!"

After hearing Tony's account , Steve couldn't help but stared at him. "How come you think this's a good idea to alter people's DNA?" Steve shouted at Tony.

"I'm not altering people. I'm altering you. I just want to help you adapt better."

"Except that you don't succeed and I'm with children." Steve consciously didn't touch his stomach.

"What's the matter? Every male carries babies to term. It's the norm."

"It may be the norm for seahorse mermaids, but I'm a werewolf. Male werewolves don't carry babies."

"... So what do you want to do with them?" Tony asked, eyes very wide.

"I don't know. It's .... I don't expect children in my life. I don't expect children come through this way to my life."

"So ....what do you want to do with it? It's your body, Steve. I respect your decision."

What does that even mean? "Just leave me alone for awhile. I need time to process it."

"All right," Tony said. Before he left, he said, "I'm always here for you, you know." Steve didn't answer. Tony 's shoulder slumped and he swam out of Steve's room.

It was... Now Steve reached for his stomach. There were lives forming inside, though he didn't feel then that. But it would change. Would the litters inherit the serum? Would they inherit traits from both Tony and him? How did it work, anyway?

But he did want the children. He might not think of this a lot, but when he heard the news, he had an intrinsic protectiveness toward them. He wanted to see them grow. He didn't have much things of his own, but these children, it would be his. And Tony's. Would Tony accept the responsibility? It would be hard to be a father, not to mention father of cross-species children. His head hurt when he thought of the special need they required. Tony, the flirty, happy, carefree Tony, would he want to be a father?

There was a reason that Steve hadn't told Tony that he chose him as a mate, for life. He didn't want to put a lot of stress on the relationship. Mermaid were known to be fickle, and Tony... well he could have better choice than Steve, a werewolf who couldn't quite give him a respectable life. It would be difficult for him and his children to be accepted by the Atlantean society. He had wondered whether Tony would drift, but he didn't expect this would be the last straw. Lady Lunar was playing a big joke on him.

Maybe this way was better. He could have the remainder of the relationship. He would raise them, love them, told them that they were special. He would do to them like his mother did to him. When he saw Tony again, he made a decision.

"Steve, if you don't want the children, I'll help and support you." Tony said, looking serious.

"It's a sensible thing to do." Steve finally said, heart weighed down. It cemented Steve's position not to tell Tony. Tony clearly wanted none of them. So why bother him? That was why Steve didn't say anything about his decision to keep the children.

* * *

That night Tony slept beside Steve and Steve looked at him, really looked at him. Because... with his decision made, he would probably need to return to Earth at the end, never been able to see Tony again. He wanted the face of Tony to be imprinted into his heart. He didn't want to force Tony to make a decision and responsibility he clearly expressed to be Do Not Want. He didn't want their relationship to became a heavy burden and better he'd quit before it became full of bitterness.

* * *

Steve didn't expect that hiding a pregnancy would be so hard. But he didn't want Tony to know that he was keeping the children. His shape wasn't quite showing, but he definitely found that everything smelt worse. This morning he felt dizzy. It definitely felt worse than the female werewolves he saw had experienced. Perhaps this was a male problem.

"Steve..."

"What?"

"I think you're getting more moody,"

If even Tony noticed, this would be a problem. But Steve just felt the urge to get away from everyone. The Wolf inside him yearned to be alone, to keep away from the competition. "It's because it's near the full moon. It's a phase." Steve made an excuse.

Another day Tony said, "You're putting on weight."

"Winter's coming. This's hibernation weight," Steve said.

Tony asked with curiosity. "We're in space. How can you detect the winter and full moon?"

"It's a werewolf thing."

Tony didn't say anything more and Steve counted it as a win.

* * *

Steve felt unwell and dizzy. He stumbled on the bed, not wanting to climb back up. Tony showed his serious face. "i need to get you to the medical personals.

" But..."I'm all right!"

"You don't look all right." Then Steve vomited on Tony.

Tony looked horrified. This seemed to cement Tony's position as despite Steve's protest, Tony called in the medical personals.

The secret that Steve wanted to keep from Tony was finally in open. Tony looked shocked. "You're keeping the children?"

Time to face the ugly truth. Steve leaned onto the bed and said, "It may not be what you wish, but..."

"I don't... Why do you think like this?" Tony frowned.

Steve shouted at him, "You went on a course to Earth to bring me abortion leaflets!" He still could remember how it hurt.

"I thought you wanted it. You agreed that it's sensible." Tony said

Steve couldn't quite believe Tony. He said, "Well, I may not want to be sensible. Don't you think of it?"

"If so... I would equally be happy not being sensible with you."

"But you raise the topic!" Steve bit his lips

"Well, I want you to have the options. You always say I'm irresponsible. I don't think you want me as children's father." Tony hold Steve's hand. "I wish you would tell me."

"Tony,..." Steve daren't to hope yet.

"I said I would support your choice. It's my fault for not letting you know that it goes both way."

"It's not your fault, not totally."

"Well, then I need to arrange for the best prenatal care. Nothing's too much for you and our children."

"Is it a bit sudden?"

"I just want the best for you."

Steve looked at the their hands held together. Maybe this would work.

* * *

Tony was the simultaneously worst and best thing to have during a pregnancy, Steve found. It was great to have someone give you a (not very good) foot massage when you complained of a foot cramp, but not when every time you had so much a cough that he called in the medical individuals. It was quite embarrassing. Steve wished that he could shift during the pregnancy when he vomited in the morning. He didn't recognize female werewolves to have such problems. But this might be dangerous to the children. After all, a male body was not equipped to be pregnant, and who knew what would happen to the kids? Any risk was unreasonable. So Steve soldiered on.

One night, Steve had a surge of homesickness and watched an old movie called A Tree of Life because it seemed like something positive and soothing. He didn't expect that to be a cosmic family melodrama tragedy and Tony was frantic when he came and saw him weep. The next day Steve noticed that a lot of his films disappeared from his shelf and were replaced with comedies.

Tony must have read and got some silly idea somewhere, because he treated Steve like fragile egg shells, and generally making other people's life hell. Case in point, he designed a high-tech nursery aquarium and displayed it to Steve proudly. Steve rolled his eyes. "Pups need to frolick in the open."

"Yeah, so I design it so they can folick in a controlled environment. Swimming is an essential skill."

"I think you miss the point. They should be out in nature."

"What nature?" It was these time that Steve worried whether they could deal with the cultural barrier to successfully raise children together. But then there were good things.

"Look, the babies kicked! I could feel it!" Tony put a hand over Steve's stomach. Steve smiled at Tony's surprised face.

"You know, if it was possible, I would have the babies transferred to my pouch," Tony said seriously when Steve was unwell again.

"It's all right," Steve said.

* * *

When Steve's time was coming close, Tony brought Steve to a space port so Steve could receive better care from Dr Don Blake When Steve wandered around the corridor and decided to go for a swim by himself, he found himself surrounded by mermaids with guns.

"You'd better go with me," one of the mermaids said.

When Steve opened his eyes again, he found that he he was strapped to some surface."Release me!"

The mermaid said, "After so much effort? I have to congratulate you on gettting hooked to Tony. It makes my kidnapping you to threaten him easier."

"You won't get away from it," Steve said.

The mermaid left Steve here and laughed, "Now let's see whether which of us won."

Steve struggled with the constraint. It only got tighter. Intelligent restraint, he thought. But he couldn't give up. The children depended on him, and he would want to see Tony again. Then the door was broke open. Steve never saw Tony so fierce. He put on his armour so Steve couldn't see his face, but his body language radiated fury. He shoved the minions always too carelessly. Followed were Pepper, which the minions fled in fear of being scratched by her spines. Happy was here, and Rodney, with his harpoon guns. Finally the minions were overcome.

Tony confronted the boss and said, "Ty, You blew your chance. If you still want to live, release Steve."

"You're threatening me? You really like this... dog?" The boss smiled.

"You're nothing compared to him," Then the fight started. Tony blasted at the mermaid he called Ty, and the later avoided it and charged at Tony, only for Tony to dock at the last minute and puched him on Ty's nose. Ty pulled out a gun and Tony broke Ty's wrist, grabbed it, and held it against Ty's neck.

Ty shouted, "You fight dirty!"

"Well, when you hurt who I love, you already stepped over the line twice." Then Tony knocked him down. Rhodey came over to guard Ty.

Tony carefully released Steve and asked, "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine. Eh, maybe not." Steve said, feeling the pain from stomach, but he should still have time...

Tony rushed Steve to the outside, where Steve saw that there was a medical team waiting. "Don't worry, I'm with you." Tony repeated again and again on the way.

When Steve was sent to hospital, Don Blake looked at him, did the check up and said, "We need to do Caeserean section." "Do it, then." Tony said.

Steve whined in pain. He could hear Tony's frantic voice. "Don Blake! Do something!" Steve lost the feeling from his lower bodies, but he was still conscious enough to see Doctor Don Blake doing the surgery. Finally, the babies were born. Don Blake carefully handed them to him. Steve looked at the children. He thought they were the most beautiful ... pups? fry? though he didn't have much experience in babies. He still felt exhausted though.

* * *

Steve looked at the babies swimming and playing. And he still thought unreal. Not long ago, he lost his world and became alone. But now, he had a new country, new people, and a new home. He had his children, his family, and Tony.

"What're you smiling at?" Tony asked.

"Thinking of how lucky I am."

"Well, I'm actually the luckier one," Tony said and held his hand. They smiled at each other.


End file.
